Research Project – 5001

Question

Can Rhetorical Devices play an effective role in bringing about emotions and feelings of the audience?

Abstract

You are left on a deserted Island and there is less or at least no hope for survival. However, out of the blue you see a few figures making their way towards you in a speedboat. As the speed boat comes nearer you see that these figures are none other than your parents, your only brother and your only sister. Howe would you reaction be to such a surprise? I bet you would be overwhelmed with emotions .Thus, emotions and feelings are an integral part of a person.

“When feelings have a positive action, they do the deciding for us, or that we are not rational beings. I suggest that certain aspects of the process of emotion are indispensable for rationality. At their best, feelings point us in the proper direction, take us to the appropriate place in a decision making space, where we may put the instruments of logic to good use”(Damasio : :xvi – xvii).

To begin with this research focuses on whether rhetorical devices have any impact on the emotions and feelings of audience. To prove this point, I will use the speeches of ‘Mark Antony” from the play Julius Caesar and President Barrack Obama’s speech and analyze on the rhetorical devices employed by both the speakers.

Furthermore, the research also discusses on how these rhetorical devices are effectively used to arouse audience emotion and thus gain the intended purpose of the speech. Through his speech Mark Antony is able to sway the emotions of the audience while according to CNN.com, Barrack Obama’s speech is considered “Sober with dose of hope” (CNN.Com). Thus, Barrack Obama’s sober speech also arouses emotions.

Thus, this research focuses on the speeches of Mark Antony, from the play Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, and a contemporary speech of President Barrack Obama. An analysis will be done on the use of the rhetorical devices used by both speakers and how these rhetorical devices bring about emotions and feelings in the audience.

In addition, the concepts employed by both speakers, that is Mark Antony and Obama are well supported by rhetorical theories of philosophers and or rhetoricians like Quintilian and Damasio. Therefore, this research provides a contrastive analysis of the effects of rhetorical devices on arousing audience emotions.

Introduction

Rhetoric has gained much prestige during the past century. Rhetoric is a powerful tool to sway the world into emotions.

For the purpose of this research I will begin with Paul Ekman’s experimental example to show how the audience can be swayed by emotions. “When Ekman gave normal experimental subjects instructions on how to move their facial muscles, in effect, “composing” a specific emotional expression on the subject’s forces without knowing their purpose, the result was that the subjects experienced a feeling appropriate to expression ( Damasio: 148).

For example, a roughly and incompletely composed happy facial expression led to the subjects experiencing “happiness”, an angry facial expression to their experiencing anger
( Damasio :148).Thus, the experiment is related to Quintilian’s theory on the Art of Emotional appeal and the role of rhetorical devices in arousing audience emotions.

“ Quintilian’s theory states that it is the emotion in humans which portrays a particular behavior in a particular situation. Quintilian’s second line of inquiry is emotional display , a growing body of literature which establishes the effect of emotion on human interaction and decision making” (Katula:5). Therefore, to achieve the desired emotions and the display of this human emotion, a rhetorician needs to use effective rhetorical devices to convey his arguments to the general public. The arguments the rhetoric puts forward to the audience must have an impact , so that the audience is moved and the rhetorician or the speaker is able to achieve the intended goal and the audience are able to make decisions from the viewpoint of a rhetorician.

Much has been said about the Art of Roman rhetoric , where an emphasis is on character even to the point of Pathos. Cicero’s younger contemporaries – Caesar, Sallust, Antony were more concerned with practical persuasion than with philosophical implications of their
oratory ( Kennedy :186). In the play, Julius Caesar it is seen that “Mark Antony” has used the art of persuasion to instill pathos in the audience.

Effectiveness of rhetorical devices in Mark Antony’s Speech

For example, Mark Antony , is able to effectively arose the emotions of the audience by using powerful rhetorical devices and have the mob make the decions the way Antony wants things to be. Thus, the following few paragraphs will explain how Mark Antony has used powerful rhetorical devices to make the Roman public Believe in what he delivers through his speech and win victory over the assassinators who assassinated his most noble friend ‘Julius Caesar’.
For example, the very first rhetorical device in Mark Antony’s funeral oration is Direct Address. Antony begins his funeral oration by first of all addressing the Roman public, as, “Friends, Romans and Countrymen.” Direct Address has a great impact on audience emotion. Through his direct address Antony is able to show his appreciation and acceptance towards the Romans and thus at the very beginning Antony is able to make his connection with the audience.

Throughout his funeral ORATION, Mark Antony employs effective rhetorical devices. Another rhetorical device present in Antony’s funeral oration is – Antiphrasis. Antiphrasis is a one word irony established by context ( Harris: 32) . For example , throughout his oration Mark Antony has employed either Antiphrasis or plain irony in the context of his speech. Some examples of irony or antiphrasis present in Mark Antony’s funeral oration are:

“I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him”. ( Shakespeare: line2)

The above quotation is an example of irony as Antony says “ I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him “,Although Antony’s main purpose is to praise Caesar and sway the emotion of the audience.

In addition, examples of antanagoge is also available in Antony’s speech and I quote:

“Yet Brutus says he was ambitious and Brutus is an honorable man”( Shakespeare line 21-22).

Antony describes Brutus as honorable ,inspire of the fact that Brutus is finding faults in Caesar and accusing Caesar as Ambitious. Therefore, in the above quotation, although Brutus is literally called to be honorable, mark Antony carefully used this rhetorical device to reduce the impact of his negativity towards Brutus during his oration. In addition, when we look at the play Julius Caesar, Mark Antony was given permission by Brutus to speak at Caesar’s Funeral, however, Antony was not to speak ill of any orators. Therefore, Mark Antony has Skillfully used the rhetorical device of Antanagoge to win the audience at the same time not speaking ill of Brutus or any of the conspirators. For example Mark Antony in his speech says:

“ For Brutus is an honorable man:
So they are all, all honorable men …( Line 10-11)

Mark Antony has also employed the powerful use of the rhetorical device Antiphrasis where he has used one word irony established by context. Antony, labels Brutus and his fellow conspirators using a one word irony “honorable”. There is much irony in the above quotation, as Antony addresses Brutus and his fellow conspirators as honorable , although these conspirators assassinated Caesar who was a noble Roman Senator who worked for the good of all Romans.

Another rhetorical device used by mark Antony is the Use of Rhetorical Questions. For example,

“ I thrice presented him the kingly crown, which he did thrice refuse:
Was this ambition? Shakespeare line 24-25)

Mark Antony pauses a rhetorical question in the midst of his speech to help the audience remember Caesar and Caesar’s love for the Romans.

As a result , Mark Antony is trying to use this rhetorical device not arouse emotions in the audience. The audience will take time to think and reflect and therefore , display there desired emotion of if justice was being done by assassinating Caesar.

Thus, according to Damasio, in many situations emotions and feelings are operated precisely in that manner, from mind/brain to body, and back to mind/brain where in numerous instances the brain learns to concoct the faintest image of an “emotional” body state, without having to reenact it in the body proper ( 155).

Barrack Obama

Similarly, modern day speaker s and rhetoricians have tactfully used rhetorical devices to sway the emotions of the audience. To convey my thesis that rhetorical devices are an essence whenever, it comes to modern day discourse, I will reflect on Barrack Obama. Being a great speaker Obama was able to win the Presidency of the United States. Therefore, I will reflect on the clever use of Rhetorical devices in Barrack Obama’s Inaugural Speech to show how effectively Obama has used rhetorical devices in his Inaugural speech whereby he gained the respect of majority of the Americans as Obama is a great speaker.

Firstly , According to Quintilian’s theory, Obama could be considered “a good man speaking well” (Vassalo:268).

Quintilian begins his thesis by writing, “ the first essential for (the perfect orator ) is that he should be a good man speaking well, and consequently we demand him not merely the possession of exceptional gifts of speech , but of all the excellences of character as well” (Vassalo: 268). Thus, as a result of a persons speech , though it may not come from within, a speakers character is reflected through the rhetorical devices and by his connection with the audience.

Rhetorical devices in Barrack Obama’s Inaugural Speech

Thus, this essay also constitutes on how good a speaker Obama is and the rhetorical devices he has used in his inaugural speech. For example, Obama also uses direct address to acknowledge the audience, For example, Obama begins his speech by saying:
“my fellow citizens” (Obama. Politics:1).

In addition Obama has used a great deal of metaphor in his speech.Some exampless of metaphor are :
“Yet every so often the oath is taken among gathering clouds and raging storms”.
Obama has explained the hardships in the form of a metaphor of raging storms.

Another rhetorical device which Obama has used effectively is Antithesis. An example of antithesis from Obama’s speech is:
“On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord” ( Obama.politics/:1).

Furthermore, Obama has also effectively employed Personofication in his inaugural speech: The first example of personification is :
“ We remain a young nation,but in the words of scrtipture, the time has come to set aside childish things” (Obama.politics/:1). Obama adresses the nation as being young which is an example of personification.

Another example of personification is:
“ Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead ones more”. ( Obama.politics/: 2). Obama addresses the nation as friend by saying that the United states the country itself is friendly(Obama.politics/:2).

Moreover, Obama has also employed the rhetorical device called anaphora .
“ The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, allare free, and all deserve a chance to pursue thair full meaning of happiness” (Obama.politics/:1).

Another rhetorical device President Obama’s speech comprises of is Epithet. Epithet is an adjective or adjective phrase appropriately qualifying a subject (noun) by naming the key or important cahracteristic of the object as “laughing happiness”…( Harris: ). An example of Epithet from Obama’s speech is;
“Recall that earlier generations faced down facism and communism not just with missiles and tanks , but with ‘sturdy alliances’ and ‘enduring convictions’.

Thus, the use of above mentioned rhetorical devices, helped made Obama’s speech appreciative and at the same time appealing to the audience. Obama’s speech indeed aroses emotion, which is a oerfect example of the Art of Emotional appeal. According to CNN.com Obama’s speech is considered to be “Sober with dose of Hope” ( CNN.Com). For example, the quotation which proves this is:

“ It is kindness to take in a stranger when the levies break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighters courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parents willingness to nurture a child that finally decides our fate”( Obama.politics/:2).

Not only Obama but there are other Presidents who have been able to use rhetorical devices effectively in their speeches to win the emotions of people. However, I considered Obama’s speech as part of my research project, as Obama is the current President and bringing some highlight on his inaugural speech would reflect on what his spesch meant for our present day democracy.

Conclusion

Both Mark Antony and Barrack Obama effectively used rhetorical devices to win the emotions of the audience. For example , Mark Antony employed rhetorical devices such as Direct address, Antiphrasis, Antanagoge and rhetorical questions.

On the other hand, Barrack Obama’s speech which is considered “Sober with dose of hope” has also swayed the world into an array of emotions ( CNN.com). Some of the few mentioned rhetorical devices in Obama’s speech are: Direct Address, Metaphor, Antithesis, Personification, Anaphora and Epithet.

Although there may be other rhetorical devices which both the soeakers would have employed, I considered focusing on the rhetorical devices for the purpose of arosing emotions and feelings. I feel that rhetorical devices are an effective tool in bringing about emotions and feelings in audience.

Thus, I believe that Rhetorical devices doubtlessly play an effective role in bringing about the emotions and feelings of audience. Without, emotions and feelings a person would be considered to be empty and lifeless, therefore, emotions make human beingsd what we are today.

“ This is not to deny that emotions and feelings can cause havoc in the process of reasoning under certain circumstances” (Damasio: xvi).

However,
“ At their best emotions and feelings point us in the proper direction, take us to the appropriate place in decision making space, where we may put instruments of logic in good use. (Damasio : xvii).

To sum up, rhetorical devices can be used to reach a particular group of audience and these devices can be an effective tool in arosing emotions. It helps a speaker convey his or her intentions or ideas which may have been impossible to be imparted directly, otherwise.

WORKS CITED

1. Damasio, Antonio R. Descartes’ error: emotion, reason, and the human brain: New York:
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 1994.

2. Katula ,Riachard. Rhetoric Review. Vol.22, No.1, 2003, 5-15.

3. “Obama’s Inaugural Speech.” CNN Politics.com. 20 January 2009.*may 2009.
<http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/20 Obama.politics/

4. Shakespeare ,William. “Mark Antony’s Funeral Oration.” Julius Caesar. 1996 -99.KET
<http://www.dl.ket.org/latin1/things/holidays/ides/brutus.htm

5. Vassalo , Philips. “Dating the Educational Philosophy of Quintilian”. A Rhetoric Review of General Semantics; July8.Vol.65 Issue 3, 267-273

APPENDIX

MARK ANTONY’S FUNERAL ORATION
From: Julius Caesar
by William Shakespeare
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath Caesar answer’d it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest–
For Brutus is an honourable man;
So are they all, all honourable men–
Come I to speak in Caesar’s funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He hath brought many captives home to Rome
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill:
Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And, sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for him?
O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,
And I must pause till it come back to me.

Watch the full inauguration speech »
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Watch with CNN Watch the historic inauguration of Barack Obama with CNN and the best political team on TVLive coverage all day see full schedule » Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America: They will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the fainthearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated, but more often men and women obscure in their labor — who have carried us up the long, rugged path toward prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
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For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again, these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: Know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West: Know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world; duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than 60 years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world … that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive… that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested, we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back, nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations. E-mail to a friend Share this on: Mixx Facebook Twitter Digg del.icio.us reddit MySpace StumbleUpon | Mixx it | Share
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